Hanes Men’s EcoSmart Fleece, Pullover Crewneck Sweatshirt, 1 or 2 Pack by Hanes

Très joli sweat, la couleur est lumineuse, il taille un peu grand, mais c’est parfait pour couvrir le ventre.

The Hanes EcoSmart fleece crewneck is no luxury garment, let us be clear. It is simple, inexpensive, and unassuming. Naturally we handed it off to Jeeves, the estate’s man of errands, for his use on blustery mornings. I of course would have no knowledge of how soft the interior feels, nor how surprisingly warm it remains after a wash or two. The fit is serviceable, the stitching holds, and the fabric carries itself with a durability unbecoming of its modest price. Five stars for a garment that pretends to be common while clearly earning a place in the rotation of those who discover its comfort.

The Hanes Men’s EcoSmart Fleece is comfortable, warm, and very soft on the inside. It has a relaxed fit that makes it perfect for everyday wear, lounging, or layering in colder weather. The fabric feels durable yet lightweight, and it washes well without shrinking or losing shape. Great value for the price, and I like that it’s made with recycled materials. Highly recommend!

I buy everything in small so I found it weird that I needed this in a medium. I’m 5’8, 140 pounds, and on the skinny side. This in medium fits about regular on me. It’s not oversized or baggy. I would venture to say it’s almost slim, especially in the arms, and the length of the garment is good for my height. It’s at the hips or slightly below that. It’s not thick. It’s about midweight, but if I had to pick one of the extremes I’d say it’s more on the thin side. I’ve only washed it a couple of times and it’s not pilling yet or losing shape but at this price I’m not going to be too picky about the durability. The royal blue color they offer is really what made me go with this sweatshirt and it matches the picture.

FOR REFERENCE: I bought 2 of the sweatshirts in Stonewash Green, sizes Medium and Large.

My intent was to find something reasonably priced, warm, and comfy to wear – mainly so I could quickly put together a basic, casual, and decent looking outfit that was suitable to wear in public. I wanted a sweatshirt I could launder at least 15 times before it became too worn out looking to try to wear at a social event. Even after the appearance degraded, I still wanted the sweatshirt to remain warm, comfy, and in tact so I could wear it while lounging inside my home or during other situations that didn’t require me to look quite as put together.

I’m a female, 5’6 tall, about 115 lbs, 32C bra size, 26 inch waist, and 36.5 inch hips. I have slightly broader shoulders and a slightly longer torso than the average female of my size. I have a slender build.
I wanted one sweatshirt to fit pretty loose (for layering and comfort) and another to have a trendy oversized looked.

I definitely should have bought larger sizes, and I don’t think these sweatshirts will hold up the way I had hoped.

MAIN THOUGHTS: Overall quality is “barely okay.” (I guess it really depends on how you intend to use this sweatshirt and the pricing. You may find the quality to be acceptable… or very disappointing.) Shrinks a lot after just one wash – almost by a size and a half. Shrinkage is more drastic in the length of the body and sleeves, but also affects the width. Overall, does not launder well under “normal conditions.” You may have to be very careful to avoid any heat or abrasiveness to keep this sweatshirt looking its best for as long as possible. (Not worth the effort, IMO.) Stains show easily on this particular color and are surprisingly difficult to remove. Possible dye issues. The large sweatshirt came out with what appears to be bleached/faded spots on the bottom banding. (We don’t use bleach or a lot of harsh chemicals in my home due to allergies and skin sensitivity issues. So, I’m not sure how this occured. No other clothing item came out of the laundry with the same problem.) Already noticed some slight pilling in spots. Barely noticeable now, but this is only after one laundry session. Sweatshirts aren’t very warm, but they are comfortable (as long as you get the correct size).

If you choose to buy this sweatshirt, I’d recommend you buy 1-2 sizes larger to account for shrinkage and to allow for layering. If you only plan to wear a thin tank top underneath, you probably don’t need to size up too much. But if you plan to wear a long sleeve thermal underneath and still want a loose fit, I’d go up 2 sizes.

MORE SPECIFIC DETAILS: This sweatshirt is between light-weight and mid-weight thickness. It’s more suitable to wear during chilly/cooler days in the Fall or Spring. It’s not enough to keep someone warm during very cold Winter weather without adding several layers underneath and on top.

I wore both sweatshirts twice before washing them. Once with only a tank top underneath, and once with a thin long sleeve thermal underneath. Then I machine washed them in semi-warm water and dried them on medium heat (being careful not to leave them in the dryer more than necessary).

BEFORE LAUNDERING: Both sweatshirts felt slightly rough (nothing really bothersome or too noticeable) and disappointingly thin. The color was as expected – a lovely muted, pale green. One sweatshirt arrived with excess threads hanging from the bottom. But I was able to safely cut them off without risk of anything unraveling. I liked the way both tops fit and draped. The sizes were as I hoped they would be. I accidentally spilled a cold, milky coffee drink on the smaller sweatshirt. I treated it with a pre-wash stain remover. Then threw both sweatshirts in the washer with a pair of jeans and no-lint sports towel (all similar colors as the sweatshirts).

AFTER LAUNDERING: Both tops became softer and slightly fluffier after washing. This made them feel a bit thicker and warmer. Both were noticably smaller, though. The large top now fits similar to the way the medium used to fit. Except it’s a tad bit shorter. Both tops no longer drape the way they did before I washed them. It’s not a huge issue for me, though. The banding on both tops also shrank a bit. I no longer like the way the medium fits me. Prior to washing, the end of the sleeves reached halfway down my fingers. The sleeve cuffs were loose enough that I could have them drape that way, but just snug enough that I could pull them back around my wrists. Now the wrist cuffs sit snuggly around my wrists. When I reach for items above my head, the sleeves pull back a bit, exposing more of my wrists… and the waist hem rides up so that I have to yank it down when I drop my arms back down to my sides. (That’s how badly the top shrank in length after just one wash!) The brown color from where I spilled my coffee on the medium top was gone, but there’s still a visible stain. It just looks a couple shades darker than the sweatshirt color… like I spilled water on myself and it’s starting to dry a bit. (I’m going to try a different stain remover and wash it again. Hopefully it works, otherwise this top will permanently look dirty.) As I already mentioned, the larger top had some pale pumkin-yellow spots on the lower banding – similar to what bleach spots would look like. I’m okay with the fit of the larger size sweatshirt even after it shrank. So, it’s a shame that the color bled the way it did.

Overall, I’m disappointed with my purchases. These are already going to be dedicated lounging and housework shirts. They are a bit warmer and very soft inside, which is nice. And nothing has unraveled, so it seems the stitching is good. I don’t think these would be great for screen-printing, simply because of the amount of shrinkage and the fact that they’re already showing signs of pilling in areas that don’t get much friction.

Hope this info helps. If anything, these aren’t bad sweatshirts to have on hand to adapt to temperature fluctuations. They’re stretchy, so they’re easy to quickly throw on as an extra layer and take off as needed. Just be mindful they leave some lint behind on 100% cotton shirts. The lint problem will probably diminish after a few washes, though.